Y-Center Of Battle Creek

Programs: Healthy living: the y provides a family-oriented environment for the community to create, maintain, and enhance healthy lifestyles. The y partners with numerous local organizations to offer programs that impact the well being of community members, including senior health partners to engage older adults and seniors. The y also provides community-based classes and events that are open to all members of the community, as well as a scholarship program that helps to cover the cost of membership, classes and events for those who are unable to pay.

education & youth development: the battle creek family ymca offers several programs to help instill core values of caring, honesty and respect to children and youth. The y offers lemon tree preschool and gsrp preschool along with tuition scholarship assistance for those who are not able to pay. The lemon tree program serves children ages 3-5, and allows children to develop social networks, learn kindergarten readiness skills, and participate in a full range of physical education activities offered at the y. The y also partners with local schools, including battle creek public schools 21st century learning program, to offer character building and physical education to create healthier lifestyles. The y offers programs that serve underserved youth in the greater battle creek community, regardless of ability to pay. The programs are centered around the y's mission of healthy living and youth development through character development. Those programs include play right basketball, which offers academic support, character development, and basketball skill development. The y also offers midnight basketball on weekend nights, opening the multi-sports center to area youth from grades 7-12 for a safe place to come for recreation, games, and character development. In the aquatics department, the y offers group and individual swim instruction to all battle creek youth, regardless of ability to pay for lessons, and also offers a low-cost lifeguard training education program for local teens.

aquatics: individual and group classes are offered to all regardless of age - starting at six months old. The low-cost lifeguard education program provides teens with skills that they can use during their first summer jobs, and also provides early responsibility and leadership education. Low-impact water aerobics classes are geared toward our older active population, and are helping to maintain flexibility and physicality for a group that is at risk for bone breaks. The social aspect of the exercise groups cannot be discounted, as the y functions as a vital social network for isolated seniors.